


A Little Bet, A Little Banter

by Cinderpaw1, dancer4813



Series: On Silent Wings We Soar [2]
Category: Critical Role (Web Series)
Genre: Alternate Universe, F/M, Minor Gore Associated with Hunting, Ranger!Percy, Snowy Owl Companion, Tal'dorei Campaign, You shouldn't talk to strangers you meet in the woods, anything can happen in the woods
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-06-16
Updated: 2017-06-27
Packaged: 2018-11-14 22:53:32
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 10,395
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11217930
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Cinderpaw1/pseuds/Cinderpaw1, https://archiveofourown.org/users/dancer4813/pseuds/dancer4813
Summary: One should always be careful of the other hunters they meet in the forest..."Into the woods,/Without delay,/But careful not/To lose the way./Into the woods,/Who knows what may/Be lurking on the journey?"





	1. The Hunt

**Author's Note:**

> This was a fic inspired by several pieces of Ranger!Percy art, and especially by [this gif](https://kalidels.tumblr.com/post/161742709893/today-while-i-was-doodling-our-boy-percy-as-a) by [@kalidels](https://kalidels.tumblr.com/) on tumblr. Cinder and I wrote it just for fun, as a bit of a break from torturing these kids in our ongoing fic, [True Colors](http://archiveofourown.org/works/9507560). Hope you enjoy!

Vex dropped to her knee, examining the tracks in front of her. Fairly fresh; her quarry had made its way down this path recently.

She let out a low breath, standing back up and pulling an arrow from the quiver on her back, keeping it nocked on her bow as she started to carefully make her way through the foliage. She kept her breath low and quiet, eyes scanning through the browns and greens, hoping for a glimpse of white.

White animals weren’t uncommon in Whitestone, with how cold and snowy it tended to be, but a white stag as spring turned into summer? That was rare, and Vex was certain that it was large enough to keep her and Vax fed for a while. After all, why waste perfectly good gold on food when she could just hunt it down? Besides, a pelt like that would be worth a pretty penny at the markets.

Trinket slunk up next to her, keeping low and lightfooted despite his size. He snuffed softly, and Vex slunk up next to him, keeping her eyes peeled for any hint of the creature.

It was about half an hour later when she froze, glimpsing the stag drinking from a nearby stream. She took a breath before pulling up her bow, taking careful aim towards it. Towards the head, as to save as much of the beautiful pelt as possible.

She let out the breath, and was about to release the arrow before she heard someone nearby. “Oh sweet Pelor!” A man shouted, sounding frightened, and the stag bolted.

“Shit!” Vex hissed, loosing the arrow a bit too late. It clattered to the ground, the stag escaping unharmed, and Vex shot a glare towards where she had heard the outburst. “What the fuck is wrong with you?” she shouted. “I almost had him!”

"What? Excuse you!" the man exclaimed, making far too much noise as he blundered around to her left. "I didn't do- Oh, gods..."

Trinket, who had reared up on his hind legs in front of Vex, was blocking the man from her view.

"Stay back," the man warned, though his voice shook and there was a rapid cracking of sticks as he backpedaled from her bear.

"Scare, Trinket," Vex murmured, coming up behind her companion, and she smirked as Trinket growled low in his throat.

"I'll shoot," the man warned, his voice a bit higher.

Vex decided that she couldn't have that, so she patted Trinket's back and he dropped back down on all fours, then she made her way around him, priding in her own silence on the forest floor.

"Oh, was this mean man bothering you, Trinket dear?" Vex cooed, passing Trinket's shoulder to see a man with a bow aimed at her companion, though his hands shook slightly.

Vex slipped an arrow from her quiver and nocked it, though she kept it casually pointing towards the ground. “Careful darling, if you take a shot at my bear he won’t be the only one with an arrow in him.” she warned the man lightly.

His eyes, bright blue behind golden glasses, widened slightly. “This is… _your_ bear?”

“Well of course.” Vex replied, leaning against Trinket and scratching behind his ears. “Why else would he be this well behaved on a hunt? A hunt which you spoiled, by the way.” Vex gave the man a light glare, studying him as she did so.

He was dressed in blues and browns, his leather armor with a golden sun emblazoned into the chestpiece showing that he served the nobility in the grand castle that overlooked the city. His arrows were fletched with black feathers, and she couldn’t help but admire the way his jaw curved, with just a hint of scruff. It was dusty brown, and didn’t seem to match the shock of white hair on his head.

"I would actually say that your bear crashed through _my_ hunt," the man said, straightening up slightly, his haughty demeanor reminding Vex of the gods-awful aristocrats in Syngorn. "I was doing just fine before you two came by and mucked it all up!"

"Oh really?" Vex asked, lifting her vow from where it was pointed at the ground. "And who shouted and scared of _my_ quarry, whom I have been tracking for hours now?"

"That was definitely his fault," the man exclaimed, gesturing towards Trinket, though he'd released some of the tension on his bow. "He startled me into giving away our position!"

"So you admit it," Vex said with a smirk, and the man's cheeks darkened to a pike hue.

"No," he muttered, though he lowered his own bow mostly toward the ground.

"Of course not, darling," Vex simpered, tightening her grasp on her bowstring, ready to raise it and fire if need be.

But then the man whistled and out of the dark canopy above them flew a white form, almost as pure as the man's hair, but with black speckled throughout its coat.

"Ah!" Vex shouted, dropping her arrow she'd had notched, though her bow remained tightly in her grasp. "What the-"

The bird dove at her again, only just missing her as Vex dodged out of the way, Trinket growling and batting the air as he tried to keep it away from her.

The man whistled again, and the bird, which Vex realized to be a snowy owl after it had stopped trying to claw her face off, landed on his shoulder.

 "Good job, Artemis," he said affectionately, too quietly for Vex to hear, though she had been teaching herself to read lips. He gave her a sliver of meat from a pouch at his side and the owl gulped it down in one swallow.

Vex huffed, dusting herself off, and the man just chuckled as he watched her.

“Fair is fair,” he told her, reaching up to gently scratch at the feathers at the owl’s neck. It made a soft thrumming sound as it relaxed on his shoulder, and Trinket just growled at them.

“You’re an ass.” Vex grumbled, grabbing the arrow she had dropped from the ground. “Now I have to try and find the damn stag again, and waste time I could have spent prepping it. I’ll be lucky if I find it again before nightfall.” She glanced up at the sky, and the sun that was slowly but steadily making its way towards the horizon.

“Now wait just a moment.” The man replied, his eyes narrowing slightly. “I’ve been hunting that stag for a week now. I laid claim on it first.” 

“Not much of a hunter, are you, if it’s taken you a week,” Vex retorted. “Besides, what the hell do you need it for? Did one of your snooty bosses have a hankering for white pelt? I doubt you want it for the meat, I bet they keep you nice and well fed at the castle. But this stag means meals for me and my family, and I’m the one who nearly killed it after only a day.”

He didn’t need to know that to her, family was just her twin brother and her bear. Let him think he was starving children out of their home, if that’s what it would take to convince him leave the stag as her quarry.

The owl, Artemis, ruffled her feathers and hooted irritably, and the man straightened up, raising his chin. He opened his mouth to say something, then seemed to think better of it and swallowed before speaking again.

“I’m sorry, I do believe we got off on the wrong foot,” he said, dropping his chin again, though he still held an air of regality around him. “My name is Percival.” He slid the arrow he’d drawn back into his quiver and stopped forward slightly, his hand extended for her to shake.

Vex regarded him for a moment, wariness warning her away, but stepped forward to meet him, grasping his hand and shaking it firmly. His fingers that weren’t covered by an archer’s glove were calloused and belied his station as some worker, and Vex wondered why the nobles in the city didn’t have some mercenary they could hire to do a better job than this stuck-up prick of a stablehand.

“Sounds pretentious,” Vex said, before introducing herself. “Vex’ahlia.”

“Just Vex’ahlia?” Percival asked, raising an eyebrow and earning himself an eyeroll.

“What, like Just Percival?” she shot back at him.

He blinked in surprise, but nodded. “Fair enough.”

Percival stepped back after they let go of each other's hands, looking her over. Vex's face curled into a light frown, keenly aware of how her cheekbones, already high thanks to the elven blood in her, were even more prominent than they should be.

Percival sighed. "Look, I don't need the meat." He admitted. "But I do need the pelt. You're very quiet, I didn't even notice you. Granted, the bear drew most of my attention, but still. I propose we make an alliance, and work together to get the stag."

Vex just raised an eyebrow at him. "I don't need the charity, thanks." She replied cooly. "...But I'm always up for a challenge. I propose a wager. Whoever gets the killshot gets the stag, and gets to choose what we take from it. Does that sound fair?"

Percival frowned, but seemed to be considering her offer.

"What do you think, Artemis?" he asked aloud, before whispering a few words that sounded like a spell. Vex nearly drew an arrow on him again, but then she realized that while he was still speaking, his voice had changed from speaking Common to hooting in low tones, Artemis doing the same in return.

Vex stared, agape, for a moment, before schooling her features to something hopefully apathetic. She had been living in the forest for years now, and while she had been able to channel some of the wild magic around her into simple spells of healing, or imbuing her arrows with the power to restrain her targets, whatever spell he'd used was still far beyond her capabilities.

Percival continued speaking with the owl before they both looked at her simultaneously. It was a little unnerving how they timed it, and Vex was thankful that Trinket was still at her side. He let out a low grumble, and Vex found herself wishing she knew the same spell Percival had used.

"You have a deal," Percival replied, holding his hand out for another handshake.

Vex still felt wary, but reached her hand out to clasp his in her own. The moment they shook, Artemis took off in flight, disappearing into the treetops towards the direction the stag had run off.

"Cheater!" Vex retorted, dropping Percival's hand and rushing towards the bank of the stream to begin examining the tracks left in the mud there.

"I'm using the resources at my disposal," Percival called after her, still managing to sound prim and proper.

Vex released an angry huff as she knelt down, examining the direction the stag had been headed.

"Loop around that way, Trinket," she told him, pointing to the side. "If you find the stag chase him this way, slowly, alright?"

Trinket nodded and groaned, heading off on his own as Vex ran after the stag's tracks, keeping a sharp eye out for any scratches from his antlers on the trees, or for broken branches he might have snapped on the course of his retreat.

She continued to follow the few markings of a trail, keeping an arrow at the ready. She couldn’t afford to lose out to Percival. Even if he gave her the meat, the blow to her pride, at losing a wager in her element, would be a little too much.

After about five minutes, she caught a glimpse of white out of the corner of her eye, and raised her bow to aim at it. It took her a moment to realize that the white she saw wasn’t the stag, but rather, Percival, low to the ground and tracking as well. He was just ahead of her and to her right, and well, he deserved another little scare.

She aimed at the tree trunk directly above him, and loosed an arrow. It buried itself into the wood with a satisfying “thunk” a handful of inches above his head, and Percival jumped, glancing over his shoulder.

“Watch it!” he hissed at her, and Vex just gave him a coy smile.

“I apologize,” She simpered back at him. “Maybe it would help if you weren’t the same color as our quarry.”

Percival's pale cheeks flushed as he glared at her, but she just winked and dashed off ahead of him. He followed heavily for a few moments, but then what little training he had seemed to kick in, and the sound of crunching leaves died away behind her.

In spite of herself Vex glanced behind her as she stood on a fallen tree, and found she was begrudgingly surprised at how well he could hide, even from her keen sight.

Taking no more time to linger, however, she pressed forward, deeper and deeper into the wood.

An hour passed, only the occasional track or broken branch keeping her on the trail. There was no sign of Percival, and Vex wasn’t certain if that meant either she or he were on the entirely wrong path, or if he was just that good at staying hidden when he was paying attention to it.

She ducked low to examine a few muddled tracks when she heard the telltale hiss of an arrow and the sound of it embedding itself into the stump directly to her right.

Her head snapped up, eyes catching a glimpse of Percival, who was lowering his bow. He had a smile on his face as he watched her, looking entirely too pleased with himself.

“An arrow for an arrow.” He replied, giving her his own wink before moving ahead and disappearing into the underbrush.

“Dick.” Vex mumbled to herself, her own cheeks starting to heat up as she tried to ignore the slight flutter in her chest at being on the receiving end of a playful wink, for once.

It was after another hour at least, likely closer to two, when Vex found signs of chewed leaves and an increasing number of scratches from antlers on the trees.

The sun was beginning to sink behind the tips of the Alabaster Sierras, the forest growing quieter with the oncoming night, and Vex took a steadying breath, knowing the hint was nearly over. She hadn't seen hide nor hair of Percival since he'd sent his own warning shot of sorts, and she wondered how he was faring.

Creeping forward, she peered ahead through a narrow trail, which seemed to lead to a thicket, and she grinned as she realized the stag was likely close, ready to bed down for the night if he hadn't already done so.

She slunk closer through the underbrush, arrow drawn and ready to fire at the first sign of the stag.

As she rounded the thicket, so saw a glimpse of white through the thick brambles, and grinned as she took careful aim. The chest, then, since the head was out of sight, though she would hate to spoil some of the hide.

She heard a low hooting, and a flash of white in the trees showed Artemis there. Shit, that meant Percival was close. She couldn't wait.

She loosed her arrow, and heard the echoing twang of a bowstring from nearby. Two arrows appeared in the white hide, one fletched with bluejay feathers and the other with black raven.

The stag startled, springing up to his feet as best he could, but crumpled almost immediately to the ground, and Vex rushed forward, aiming carefully at the struggling deer, loosing an arrow into its head to put the poor creature out of its suffering, just before another rushed through the trees and hit the top of its spine, making the stag jerk with the impact.

Trinket lumbered up from the opposite direction of the arrows, snuffling through the trees.

"Good job, buddy," she said, patting him on the shoulder as she grinned. She had undoubtedly gotten the killing blow, though her first shot had been too low, she noted. It had hit close to the stag’s front leg, hardly nicking a lung, and probably not even reaching the heart, while Percival's arrow was buried deeply into the stag's chest, the fletching visible just above where the deer's ribs stopped.

Trinket grumbled proudly and nuzzled into her, while Artemis flitted down to sit on top of Trinkets head.

Percival emerged from the brush, panting softly as he looked at the stag.

Artemis fluttered down and landed on Percy's shoulder, hooting softly. Percy hooted back at her before looking at Vex, and the arrows.

"...Honestly, I can't tell which of us made the real killing blow." He murmured. "They happened simultaneously." He looked up at Vex from where he was kneeling next to the deer, a look of deep respect in his eyes.

Vex nodded, feeling a begrudging respect for him too. It had been very close.

"...Take the pelt." She replied. He had earned that much, at least. "I want the meat and the antlers."

"Thank you, Vex'ahlia," Percival said graciously, and Vex bit her lip at the way her name rolled off his tongue - not like he'd only learned it that day, but like he'd known it before he even met her. "Shall we get him to a clearing where we can divide our spoils?"

Vex felt breathless, but nodded, and helped him pick the stag up, almost staggering under his weight, but resolutely holding her own. Vex was careful with her footing as she directed Percival to a small clearing close by - small by anyone's standards, but enough to fit the two of them, Trinket, and the stag.

Artemis fluttered over to Trinkets head once Percival leaned down to help carry the heavy stag, and Trinket laid down on the edge of the clearing, keeping watch. He knew to stay alert, and defend Vex from any carnivores drawn by the smell of the blood as she butchered her kills.

She took out her skinning knife, and together she and Percival worked to remove the hide from the animal, being careful not to stain it with its blood and ruin the bright white color.

There was little exchanged between them apart from directions as they removed the hide, but once it was done, she slumped to the ground to rest for a moment before tackling the process of removing the meat and antlers and putting them into packs to take back with her.

She expected Percival to leave, now that he had his part of the prize, but to her surprise he sat next to her as she rested.

"I'll help you finish butchering." He murmured. "It's a large stag."

"...Thank you, Percival." Vex murmured, acutely aware of how close they currently were. She could feel the heat of his body, despite how sweaty she was herself.

“It’s only fair,” he said, taking off the spectacles on his face and cleaning them using his handkerchief. “Since you helped me with the hide.”

They sat in silence for a long moment, twilight falling over the forest, and Vex looked over to where Artemis and Trinket were sitting. They both appeared to be asleep, though Trinket’s nose and ears twitched every so often, belying his awareness. As she watched, Artemis ruffled her feathers and settled down more onto Trinket’s head, the feathers under her beak bunching up into a sort of ruff.

“I’ve never seen her so relaxed around strangers before,” Percival murmured, making Vex jump slightly at how close he was to her ear.

“Strangers? I’m offended, darling,” Vex said, covering her jump by shifting to face him, smirking at the faint pink that colored his cheeks.

Percival cleared his throat, looking back towards their two companions. "...Considering her first response to you was calling you a "pretentious peasant", I wasn't expecting her to take a liking to you or your bear." Percy murmured, cheeks still flushed.

"Oh?" Vex replied, a little softer than she would have liked. That particular comment cut deep.

"But she seems to have done both," Percival murmured. "...As have I, I suppose."

Vex's gaze was caught by his eyes, and she realized just how bright of a blue they were when not behind his spectacles.

"Lucky me, I suppose, hmm?" she asked, stretching her legs out on the ground below her.

Percy hummed softly, putting his glasses back onto his face. "It does take a lot." He admitted, watching the sky. "...I'd like to see you again, after tonight. If you're amiable towards it, of course."

Vex's breath caught in her throat and her heart sank. They were on the move so often - she supposed they could meet in town, or in the forest again, but would he be sent on another hunting trip so soon after chasing the stag?

"We don't stay in one place too long - we were planning on moving on within the week," she said truthfully, her fingers reaching up to fiddle with the end of her braid for something to do. "Will your masters allow you away before then?"

Percival laughed, and it was a full, boisterous sound in the quiet of the forest. He looked at her, eyes crinkled with amusement. "You really aren't from around here." He murmured, seeming to relax a little more than he had previously.

Vex frowned lightly at him. "I don't see what's so funny." She replied.

Percival just shook his head, a fond smile on his face. "I'm certain you have your secrets, Vex'ahlia. I just want to keep mine, just a little longer." He reached over then, gently tucking an errant strand of hair that had escaped her braid behind her ear. "I'll tell you soon, though, assuming we meet again."

Vex felt his fingers linger on the side of her face for a moment, rough and warm behind her ear. He paused, long enough to draw the moment out, and Vex felt her heart race again as she brought her hand up to his and pulled it away.

"We should probably finish getting the meat while we still have light," she whispered, almost scared to speak louder.

She wouldn't think about how their fingers slid so easily together, or the way that his face seemed to fall slightly as he nodded, a bit of a barrier going up behind his eyes.

"Of course." Percival replied, his voice sliding back into the proper cadence he had used when they had first run into each other. Hearing that change, going from casual to formal, caused Vex's heart to ache in a strange way.

They got up and both worked on butchering the stag, loading the meat into the bags that Vex had brought for this purpose and laying them over Trinket’s back for him to carry back to the city.

They were almost done, taking a moment to rinse their hands free of blood, when Percival murmured: "I apologize. I'm not usually so forwards, especially with people I just met. I didn't mean to make you uncomfortable."

"It's alright, darling," Vex said, nonchalant, though she kept her eyes carefully on the task at hand, afraid what she would do if she looked up at him. They couldn't stay in one place too long, and while Whitestone was getting warmer as the months crept closer to summer, it was still much colder than either herself or Vax preferred, especially when they had limited funds for lodging. "I won't hold it against you."

"Good. I'd hate to be on the wrong end of your bow. I almost was, at one point." He chuckled warmly. "...This was one of the best hunts I've been a part of. Thank you, for that. Truly."

"No problem, Percival," she said, mimicking his way of speaking so badly that the two of them burst out laughing, which made Artemis hoot reproachfully at them.

Percival gave her a warm smile as the laughter died down. "...You can call me Percy." He told her then, the barrier that had been put up when she pulled his hand away lowering once more.

She smiled back, watching him gather up his things as she did the same with hers.

"Well then, if we're being fair... You can call me Vex, darling."

"Vex..." He murmured, even the nickname rolling pleasantly off his tongue, sounding like it belonged there. "A wonderful name."

They made their way back to Whitestone in comfortable silence as night truly fell around them, but when they reached the outskirts of the city Percy stopped.

"I have to head this way now," he nodded towards the castle. "But I do hope to see you once more, before you leave." He took a deep breath before moving in a little closer, murmuring something in a musical sounding language before pressing his lips lightly to her forehead. Vex had been getting ready to back away, and she felt a warm tingle spread through her body at his touch. "...What was that?" She asked, voice catching slightly in her throat as her heart pounded.

"A blessing." Percy murmured, cheeks flushed. "And a promise." He smiled at her, giving her one last wink before whistling, and Artemis flew off of Trinkets head to his shoulder before he began walking, disappearing into the trees.

Vex gaped after him, the lilting rhythm of the language lingering with her even after the warmth had faded, and when his form had disappeared into the darkness she turned back to Trinket, who was scratching his face with one of his paws, looking bored.

"Do you know what that was?" she asked, but the bear only seemed to shrug, and Vex shook her head in disbelief.

But she had fresh venison to deal with, and so Vex headed to the run-down house where she and Vax had holed up, debating how much she would tell her brother about the day's events.

 

A few days later Vex was busy making sure all of their belongings were packed in their bags while Vax was out getting the last of his business for the Clasp sorted out, when she heard knocking against the window. It was hard and insistent, and when she looked over she saw Artemis there, banging her beak against the window and clutching something in her talons. She gave Vex the most irritated look Vex had ever had an owl give her, and Vex couldn't help but chuckle as she opened the window to let the owl in.

"Is Percy here?" She asked, giving her some gentle scratches behind her ear as an apology for having her wait outside.

Artemis tilted her head as if to say "Why would I have knocked on the window if he was at the front door" (not that Vex knew what owls said regularly, but it seemed like an apt interpretation), and Vex sighed.

"Shame, I hoped to be able to see him before I left," she murmured, and Artemis trilled a bit, as if trying to lift her spirits. "Well, send him my.... send him my love when you go back, yeah?"

A gentle hoot and nip at her fingers was the affirmative answer from the bird, who then hopped to the side, revealing what she had brought.

Vex picked up the tightly rolled bundle and unfurled it, revealing a small bag made of white deerskin, and two scrolls of paper with her name in beautiful handwriting written along the outside.  She felt the traveling bag with her fingers, recognizing the pelt of the white stag.

She put the bag down to unroll the scroll with her name on it, and began to read.

 --

_Vex'ahlia-_

_I hope this finds you in good health. Unfortunately, my duties have kept me at the castle and unable to find a moment to meet with you before you leave. I hope this bag goes to good use; you earned it, and I made it myself._

_The second scroll is the incantation and movements required to speak with animals. I figured it would be useful; your bear has some wonderful insights, and he cares for you very deeply. (It would be a shame if you never heard him tell you himself.)_

_Safe travels, dear, and if you ever find yourself in Whitestone again, come and find me. You will always be considered a friend and guest._

_Fondly yours,_

_Percival Fredrickstein von Musel Klossowski de Rolo III, second son of the house of Whitestone._

_(Do you see now why I wanted to keep my secrets that day? You were the first person to make me fight for a kill, and being myself without being the noble was refreshing. Thank you again for that.)_

 --

Vex gasped as she finished reading, her hand flying up to cover her mouth.

"De Rolo?" she whispered, hardly able to believe it. She remembered Percy's amusement, and understood, but _this_ … it was more than she could have imagined.

She traced the words 'Safe travels dear' and bit her lip, surprised at how emotional she felt over some words written on a piece of paper.

Glancing over the letter again, she remembered the other scroll, and hurriedly unrolled it to find the incantation for the spell written out, its pronunciation beside it. At the bottom of the paper was a series of four sketched hands, the way to physically channel the spell into existence.

She sounded out the words to the spell once through, and though they sounded horribly stilted to her ears, there was a spark deep in her chest that she knew had the potential of becoming something more.

Artemis hooted at her before fluttering over to Trinket, hooting as she landed on his head. Trinket let out a content rumble, growling back.

Vex smiled at the sight, wondering what they were saying to each other, before Artemis seemed to bid Trinket farewell and head back out toward the castle.

"Thank you, Percy," Vex murmured, following the owl’s flight back to the castle as far as she could, remembering the the warmth Percy’s words had inspired in her chest.

Maybe they would meet again, one day.


	2. The Rescue

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> It's finally posted! Thanks for hanging in there, guys - we've had this written for a while, but feels and other writing happened. xP
> 
> Anyway, thanks for joining us for our foray into this mini 'verse! This is all we've planned to write, but if you have any pressing ideas or scenes you'd like to see, go ahead and send them our way - we're always looking for more excuses to write! ;)

Two years later and many cities after Whitestone found Vex and Vax at a little tavern, drinking and celebrating their victory against a necromancer, their first of what Vex was certain would be many adventures with the entirety of their little group.

She heard a shout as a large white something flew through the front doors, heading straight for Vex and landing on her shoulder. She flinched away, not expecting it, but recognized the owl immediately.

"Artemis?" she asked, surprised. Trinket looked up from his place at the table, where the bartender had provided him with a big rump steak and some ale in a bowl, much to the amusement of the other patrons.

The owl looked severely ruffled and about as worried as an owl could get. Some of her feathers were out of place, and when Vex reached to smooth them out, Artemis hooted loudly and nipped at Vex's finger, her talons digging into Vex's shoulder.

"Where'd you get the bird?" Scanlan called from down the table, causing Keyleth to perk up excitedly.

"A bird?" the druid asked, looking wildly around and almost unseating herself. She’d already had a bit too much to drink, and seemed a bit dizzy. "Oh, she's beautiful!"

"Where's Percy?" Vex asked Artemis, under her breath, but the owl only hooted dolefully. "Is he okay?"

Artemis hooted again and pulled at some of Vex's hair, urging her toward the door.

"I think I'm going to take her outside," she said to the rest of the group, sharing a look with her brother as she did so. “Trinket, would you like to join us?”

Trinket growled in agreement and bobbed his head, hefting his considerable weight onto his feet as he followed Vex out the front door.

Once they were outside, Artemis resumed tugging at Vex’s hair, puffing her feathers up and shuffling nervously back and forth on her shoulder.

"What's going on?" Vex asked, but she remembered the scroll Percy gave her, and muttered the spell to speak with animals, her hand moving through the familiar gestures.

"Percival is in trouble," Artemis told her as soon as the spell had taken hold. "I saw you, and remembered. He likes you, you like him. You need to help him."

The owl’s voice was regal, proud and distinctly feminine, but she also seemed scared.

"He's in trouble? All the way down here?" Vex asked, her stomach curling. "What happened? How can we help?"

“Where is he?” Trinket growled, lifting his nose up to Artemis.

"He went after Ripley, she got him taken to the holding areas," Artemis replied. "I got away, he told me to find help, and I saw you. I can show you – come, please. He's hurt."

Vex had no idea who 'Ripley' was, but she didn't sound like good news. Her mind was racing - Percy, in the south? Hurt? What had he gotten himself into?

"Are there guards? Am I going to need help getting to him? My brother can pick locks-"

"All the help you can get," Artemis replied. "Please, Vex'ahlia..."

"Wait here, then," Vex said, and Artemis flew off her shoulder to land on Trinket’s head. He made a pleased sort of noise as Vex assured them she’d be right back. "I'll go get my friends."

She rushed back inside the tavern to where the SHITs were sitting and motioned to her brother, who stood up immediately.

"Percy's here, and he's in trouble," she said, her thoughts racing. "Artemis said to get all the help we can."

"Well, Kiki's sloshed," Vax pointed out, gesturing toward where she was sitting. "But I think everyone else might be of some use."

“I can help!” Keyleth exclaimed immediately, throwing up her hand and making fairy lights dance around their heads. Some of the other patrons of the tavern shot looks their way, and Vex sighed.

"Who's Art'mus?" Grog asked, also sounding wasted, but Vex knew that was nearly a constant state for the Goliath.

"Who's Percy?" Scanlan asked, glancing between the twins, an eyebrow raised.

"A... friend," Vex replied, figuring that was the best way to describe their relationship, despite not having seen him in years. "He's a ranger, like me. Artemis is his owl, and she came to get me because she recognized me."

"Any friend of yours is a friend of ours, of course," Tiberius said, getting to his feet.

"And you said he's in trouble?" Pike asked, also standing. "Where? What happened?"

"I'm not sure," Vex admitted, sighing. "But she said he's over in the holding cells, and that we need to get over there quickly."

"Then let's go," Vax replied, and that was that. Leaving their drinks at the table, the group followed Vex outside.

The moment Artemis saw Vex, she called "This way!" and took off into the air, Trinket loping behind her. She led the way, past the more residential area of the small town, to where the local lockup was, and doubled back around to land on Trinket’s back.

"He's in there?" Vex asked, and Artemis gave her confirmation as they approached the low-set brick building.

"Yes, but be careful; I don't know if Ripley is still around,” she warned.

"How are we gonna get in?" Pike murmured, looking at the guards around the doors.

"We could jus' smash our way through the front door," Grog volunteered with a grin, tightening his hands on his axe.

"Or we could sneak in," Vax pointed out, fingering the daggers in his belt. "We probably shouldn't draw too much attention to ourselves if we want to get jobs around here again."

"Let's sneak in," Vex agreed. "But we'll probably want to split town after we get him, just in case."

"I'm not going to be much help if we stealth," Pike murmured, gesturing to her plate armor.

"Some of us can go in, and some stay," Scanlan reminded her.

"Oh! I have something!" Tiberius said, digging in his pocket and producing a pair of earrings. "I just finished these, and I wanted to make some more before using them, but it’ll take a while to enchant them, and if we want to use them tonight-“

“What are they, Tiberius?” Vex interrupted, wanting to get to the point.

“They are earrings, through which we can talk to each other. If Vex takes one, and someone stays out here wearing the other, we-“

“We can communicate back and forth instantly.”

“Yes!” Tiberius exclaimed, obviously happy she had caught on. “And we can easily let each other know if backup or assistance is at all required.”

"How long have you been sitting on these?" Vax asked, picking one up out of the dragonborn’s fingers and handing it to Vex. She examined it critically, eyeing the large gem, but it didn’t seem too conspicuous, and so she switched out one of her earrings for it.

"Well, I consulted our arcanist friend, Mister Ryndarien, about the exact enchantment, and it took a while for them to get finished – it takes time to enchant them, as I said, but I finished this pair last night, and I'm sure I could commission someone to make more while we're out exploring…"

"We're definitely going to need more of these," Vax agreed, handing the other to Pike. "So who's sneaking in, and who's staying out for backup?"

"I'm staying out here with Pikey-Pants," Scanlan said immediately.

"We might need that silver tongue, you're coming with us," Vax replied. "I'm going in with my sister."

"I'll come in!" Keyleth offered, her voice a bit louder than was necessary, making Vex wince.

Pike cut her off before that train of thought continued.

"Why don't you stay out here with me and we can look at the stars?" she asked, and Keyleth's eyes widened dramatically.

"Really?" she shouted in a carrying whisper, and Pike nodded emphatically.

"It'll be fun," she assured the druid, who grinned.

“I will stay with our Princess,” Tiberius said, nodding. “And provide support from out here, of course.”

"I'll stay out until you need me to hit things," Grog said. “It’s no fun sneakin’ around.”

"Thanks, Grog, we’ll let you know,” Vex said, nodding. “And I think three is enough. The more people, the more we risk getting caught."

"Call if you need us," Pike said, switching out one of her earrings for the enchanted one.

"What does your friend look like?" Scanlan asked.

"Tall, white hair, glasses, posh accent.”

Scanlan chuckled. "Where did you find someone like that?"

"Far north,” she answered, before looking at Artemis. "Stay with Pike, we'll have him back soon," she told the owl.

"Thank you," Artemis said, settling onto Trinket’s shoulder, looking much more at ease.

"We'll be back soon," Vex said to the rest of them, and followed her brother and Scanlan toward the shadows on the side of the lockup, away from where two of the guards were chatting.

“Don’t worry,” Vex heard Trinket say to Artemis as they left. “Vex will find him.”

Vex smiled, and followed the other two, stepping lightly around the corner.

As they got closer, Scanlan glanced back at the twins. "One guard distraction, coming up," he murmured, before waving his hand and whistling like the wind. A large dog appeared and ran in front of the guards, rabid-looking, with white foam oozing from the sides of its mouth.

The guards glanced at each other and drew their swords to put the "animal" down, but it turned and ran into the streets.

"Should we take care of that?" the taller one asked.

"I keep forgettin' you're not from around these parts," his companion, a solidly-built dwarf scoffed. "This is the most excitin' thing we're goin' to see on watch all week. Let's go take care of the mongrel."

The two rushed off after the dog, leaving the front door unguarded, and Vax slipped forward, listening intently, before gesturing for Scanlan and Vex to follow him in.

They passed the guard's office, where muffled snoring came from under the door, and moved on to the small row of cells, the hall lit with dim torches set in sconces along the wall. Vex peeked into each cautiously, before seeing a shock of white hair tucked into one of the corners.

She gestured for Vax to follow her to the cell. "Percy," she hissed quietly, "Percy!"

Percy's face rose from looking at the ground, and Vex saw that his glasses were missing and his already pale face was whiter than it should have been.

"Vex?" he whispered hesitantly. "Vex, is that you?"

He shifted, wincing, and Vex saw that his shirt was stained across the hem with blood.

"It's me," Vex assured him. "Artemis found me, and we're going to get you out of here. Can you walk?" she asked, the sight of the blood worrying her. She had so many questions, but now wasn't the time to ask them. Now they needed to get him out of the cells, and to Pike, to heal his injuries.

"I think so," Percy said, but he grunted and slipped as he tried to stand, landing hard on the ground again. "Or maybe not. But how are you going to get me out? Those bars are solid iron. Unless you have a key?"

He looked hopeful, and Vex felt her heart flutter and her cheeks flush. She was glad that the light shed by the torches around them was dim, so Scanlan wouldn't call her out on it.

"Who needs keys?" Vax scoffed, moving forward to work at the lock for a couple seconds before it clicked, letting the door creak open.

As soon as it was open, Vex slipped into the cell, helping Percy support his weight on her as he stood again. "Introductions later – we only have a little bit before the guards come back," she urged, trying not to think about how warm he was, or how he smelled faintly of sandalwood beneath the tang of blood.

"Here, let me help with that," Scanlan said, whistling a little tune.

Percy gasped, hand darting to his hip, but he seemed better able to support his weight after the Healing Word.

"Thank you," he muttered, though he still grimaced as he walked forward, arm around Vex's shoulder.

"Let's get out of here," Vex said, and they started toward the entrance, but then a voice came over her earring.

"Um, guys?" Pike said, "We might have a problem."

"Shit, what's happening?" Vex asked, hand up to her earring and still walking out, moving slowly to not jostle Percy too much.

"The guards seem to have lost that 'dog' that Scanlan sent them after," Pike said. "They don't seem upset, but they're going to be right in your way in a moment."

"Fuck," Vex swore. "We have Percy, but he's hurt and can't walk quickly. Can't one of you distract them for like... Five minutes? Sic Keyleth on them."

"She ran off to giggle at the fireflies - I had Grog follow her, since things seemed pretty chill out here. Tiberius would probably like to lecture them on the difference between arcane and divine magics, though… Wouldn't you, Tiberius?"

There was a few long moments of silence, during which Vax gave her a look that clearly said "hurry up" and Scanlan whistled another quiet tune that had Percy breathing a bit easier, and then Pike spoke again.

"Yeah, he's got them. You should be clear to head out now."

"C’mon," Vex murmured the moment Pike gave the okay, and they continued moving out the door, Percy still wincing as they quickened their pace to get around the side of the building and out of view of the returning guards.

The moment they were in the trees, Percy collapsed to the ground, pulling Vex along with him, his wound opening up again from the strain.

Artemis, who had apparently noticed them leave, flew over and went straight for Percy, perching on his shoulder and rubbing her face against his cheek.

"Percival!" She cried out, elated, and Percy reached up to scratch her feathers.

"Thank you, Artemis," he murmured, before looking at Vex next to him. "...And thank you, dear."

"Pike, we need you in the forest, Percy's hurt bad," Vex murmured into her earring, looking back at Percy.

"I'm already following Artemis, and I told Trinket to wait until Tiberius was done, and then look for Grog," Pike said, breathing hard.

"Of course," Vex murmured.

"Pike's on her way," she informed the rest of the group, before turning to Percy. "She's a cleric. She'll be able to heal you up, darling. No trouble."

Percy nodded, propped up half against the tree and half against Vex. Artemis was still rubbing her face against him, looking as relieved as an owl could, and Percy was gently stroking her feathers, though his breathing was labored.

"How did this happen?" Vex asked softly, not wanting to wait for Pike while Percy was still bleeding. She pressed her hands against his hip, letting the magic flow through them to help mend the nasty gash in his side, even though it still wasn't enough to close it fully.

He grunted, but breathed a heavy sigh of relief as the wound closed again.

"There was... trouble in Whitestone," he mumbled, and, while his eyes were squinted up in pain, something was telling Vex that he wasn't being entirely truthful. "I- I got away, and started tracking down one of the women responsible."

"Was she the one that did this to you?" Vex asked, voice low and feeling anger bubble up inside of her.

As the words left her lips, she heard the distinct clanking of Pike’s armor getting closer, and turned her head to see the cleric pushing through the underbrush.

"She did," Percy said shortly, gritting his teeth as he shifted again. "But I don't know where she's gone to now. She seemed... Eager to be rid of me when she turned me over to the guards."

"...We'll find her," Vex found herself promising, before Pike joined them.

"Pike, this is Percy," Vex introduced. "Scanlan did a couple Healing Words and I tried a Cure Wounds, but I don’t think it covered more than the superficial damage, if that. His wound is deep..."

She bit her lip as Pike kneeled down at Percy’s side.

"Hello Percy," Pike said, voice steady and gentle. "Don't worry, I'm a healer."

"Very nice to meet you, Pike," Percy said, still managing to sound ridiculously proper despite the circumstances. He extended his hand to shake hers, but his torso seemed to seize in pain, his face contorting, and Vex had to help him lay back, riding out the spasm.

She held onto him so he didn't twist too badly, and once he had settled Vex held his head in her lap. "Pike," she pleaded, doing her best to keep her voice from cracking, “please.”

Seeing Percy in so much pain made her heart ache.

Pike nodded, taking a breath and grasping her holy symbol before pressing her other hand against the gash, white divine light flooding the area.

Percy gritted his teeth against what Vex knew from experience to be an intense heat. As the light faded away he breathed a heavy sigh of relief and took a couple more deep breaths, but Pike looked at him with concern.

"Is that better?" she asked. Percy nodded, letting his eyes flutter closed.

"Much," he said, humming in appreciation.

"Good. I have a couple more healing spells tonight, but I think you're mostly fine for now, yeah?"

"Definitely," Percy said, smiling. "Thank you, Pike."

Vex allowed herself to gently run her fingers through his hair, trying not to think about the flutter in her chest the action caused.

She heard shouting then, from behind them.

"A prisoner is gone!"

She swore.

"Fuck, we need to move,” Scanlan said, pushing off the tree he’d been leaning on. “Come on, let's get out of here."

"Agreed," Percy murmured, and Vex helped him up. He was able to put weight down without pain now, thankfully, and Artemis took to the sky to keep a lookout as they started making their way deeper into the forest.

"Did you tell Tiberius to just find us in the forest?" Scanlan asked Pike as they ran through the forest.

"I did," Pike admitted. "Should one of us go back for him?"

"I can take one of the earrings and Dimension Door back, then we can try to find each other once you've lost those guards," Scanlan offered.

Vex saw Pike nod and start fiddling with her earring.

"Trinket will be able to find me," Vex pointed out, but Scanlan scoffed at her.

"I'm sure."

"Don't dis Trinket!" she exclaimed, but before she say anything else, Artemis had swooped down and hit him with the broad side of her wing, flapping away when he tried to bat at her.

"Hey!" he exclaimed, much to Percy's amusement, though his laughter quickly turned into a cough.

"She doesn't like people insulting her friends," he gasped out, stumbling and clinging onto Vex's arm for a moment.

Vex slowed long enough to get Percy back on his feet before they kept running.

"Since when are owls and bears friends?" Scanlan complained, taking the earring from Pike and starting to put it in.

"They're just that cool," Vex chuckled, and Scanlan rolled his eyes before disappearing in a flash of purple light.

"Is he always that irritating?" Percy asked under his breath to Vex as they continued through the trees.

"Usually worse," Vex said truthfully, and Vax laughed from ahead of them.

Eventually they had traversed deep enough into the forest that they felt they were safe from the pursuing guards, and Percy almost collapsed on the ground, chest heaving.

"I think we're camping here tonight." Vex said, looking around. The clearing was big enough for all of them, thankfully. "I'll go hunt some dinner, if you two want to set up camp?" She looked at her brother and Pike

"Can do," Vax said, already scouring the ground for a good place to put a fire circle.

"I can help-" Percy said, reaching for his back, and realizing he didn't have a bow. "Or maybe not."

"Shit, we left your bow back there, didn't we?" Vex realized, suddenly feeling foolish. Of course they had taken most of his belongings, and she had just left them, more concerned with getting Percy out.

"Hey Scanlan," she asked over the earring, "How far out of town are you guys?"

"Um, at least a few minutes?" Scanlan said. "Why?"

"We left Percy's bow in the lockup," she said, wincing as Scanlan groaned loudly. "I was wondering if you could go back for it."

"It's pretty hopping around there now, so I don't think that'll work," Scanlan said. "Sorry, Vex."

"Shitballs. Worth a try. Look for Artemis, she'll guide you to the campsite," Vex told him, glancing at Artemis. "That is, if you would, please?"

Artemis hooted softly and took off into the air, and Vex heaved a long sigh as she sat next to Percy. "Unfortunately your bow seems to be a lost cause. I'm sorry," she murmured.

Percy shrugged. "That's all right. I needed a new one, anyways," he replied.

"Still, I'm sorry for forgetting," she murmured. "...Let me help. I'll cover the cost, it's my fault for not remembering."

Percy laughed softly, looking at her with those stunning blue eyes that were even more brilliant than she had remembered. "Vex, I owe you my life," he murmured. "You don't owe me a thing."

Vex felt her cheeks darken and she nodded. "Well, when you put it that way, it's hard to argue," she murmured, brushing some hair out of her face. "But I should go hunt so we can have dinner, yeah?"

"You do that," Percy said, grinning at her, and she couldn't help smiling back.

Vex grabbed her bow and went out into the forest, returning about an hour later with a string of rabbits, all neatly shot through the eye to conserve as much meat as possible. "One for each of us, and two for Grog so he doesn't get mad," she announced to the clearing at large, laying them next to the fire.

“Good!” Grog called across the clearing, the other group having arrived while she was away.

Percy, meanwhile, had managed to gather some wild carrots and had them in a neat pile. "If we had some potatoes and spices, we could make a nice stew," he murmured.

"I'm always carrying spices." Scanlan commented, from where he was laying out his bedroll.

"And I can make potatoes! Well, it’ll take a couple minutes, but I can," Keyleth offered, starting a shoot with a twiddle of her fingers.

"Why don't you start on that?" Vex asked, and Keyleth nodded. She seemed less intoxicated than she had been, though still on the tipsy side. Knowing Tiberius and Grog, they had probably given her water to sober her up a bit.

"Are you a druid?" Percy asked, and Keyleth whipped around.

"I am!"

"Percy, this is Keyleth." Vex introduced, sitting down to start skinning the rabbits.

"Nice to meet you." Percy gave her a respectful nod before sitting next to Vex to start helping.

"Nice to meet you too." Keyleth smiled, grinning. “Do you know any other druids?”

As Keyleth and Percy continued talking, Vex glanced around and noted the look her brother was giving her and Percy. She, however, ignored it, despite her cheeks flushing a little as her knee brushed against Percy's.

They had dinner, cooking and chatting together, and Percy was introduced to the rest of the group. Grog introduced the whole group as "the SHITs", which required an explanation for that particular moniker, and overall the night was filled with laughter and amusement.

When they started retiring for the night, Vex offered to take the first watch. She was still very awake, and wanted to keep an eye on Percy for at least the first few hours of the night.

But he surprised her when he offered to join her.

"Shouldn't you sleep?" she asked under her breath.

"I'm not sure I can right now," Percy admitted.

She noticed a furrow in his brow and tension in his shoulders, and placed a hand on his back cautiously, rubbing gentle circles when he didn’t resist.

Percy let out a long breath, the tension slowly easing under Vex's touch. The furrow remained, however, and Vex frowned, pursing her lips.

"...Thank you, for the bag and the spell," she said, breaking the silence between them. "They've both come in handy, and I never got a chance to properly thank you for that."

He smiled, and she felt a slight weight lift off her chest.

"I'm assuming that's how Artemis was able to communicate with you?"

"Yeah," she murmured, smiling over at where the owl had settled down on Trinket's head after Percy had given her some of his rabbit. "Of course, I think she would have gotten the gist across even without me using the spell,” Vex chuckled. "She was as worried as an owl could get."

Percy laughed as well. "She's very dear to me," he murmured, watching their two companions. "I found her as a hatchling, and brought her home to raise her. Mother wasn't sure about having an owl in the castle, but she was so well behaved that as she grew up the entire family came to love her."

His voice was steady, but Vex could pick up the glimpses of pain behind his words.

"I had a similar situation with Trinket," she said, remembering the poachers who had captured him and his mother, a lump forming in her throat at the memory.

She was able to push through her hesitations a little easier than usual, though, and while her eyes burned slightly with tears shed long ago, she continued. "When his mother died, I took him in, and though Vax was skeptical at first he warmed up to him after a while."

"How old is he?" Percy asked, "Do you know?"

"I've had him for about nine years or so," Vex said, "But it all kind of blends together on the road. And he's a little older than that. As it is, he's definitely been helpful while we've travelled - he scares off most larger predators, and he's a nice bed when the weather is cooler."

"Sounds like an all-purpose bear," Percy said with a chuckle, and Vex nodded.

"He's dear to me too," she murmured, using Percy's words.

Percy nodded. "There's a special connection you share with him, that nobody else really understands. He's your best friend in a way that no one else is."

"Exactly," Vex agreed. "I mean, I have my brother, my twin. But even then, there are things that only Trinket knows."

"Yeah," Percy hummed in agreement. "Artemis knows me better than anyone else."

Vex nodded, leaning back against the tree who’s trunk they were sharing.

"How has life as a noble been treating you then?" Vex asked after a long moment. "Still too many people kissing up to you?"

She heard Percy's breath catch in his throat and, glancing over to look at him, saw that his eyes were starting to shimmer as tears filled them. Panicking, she backpedaled. "Unless, I mean, you don't want to talk about it," she said, almost moving to grab his hand, but laying her own on his knee instead. "It's probably a lot of lessons and dressing up fancy for people who don't care."

"More or less," Percy said with a watery chuckle. His fingers twitched and then he grabbed her hand, squeezing it tightly as he took a deep breath. "Overall it's very boring though. How have your adventures with the SHITs been? Though, I still can't believe that's the name you all stuck with."

"I don't think you understand the ridiculous nature of our group," Vex said, interlacing her fingers through his and holding tightly. She definitely heard the deflection in his voice, and she knew something bad had happened, likely to do with Ripley, but she wouldn't push if he didn't want her to.

Percy squeezed her hand tightly in return, and shifted a little so their sides were touching. "Tell me about it, then," he murmured.

"Of course," Vex replied softly, and began telling him the story of how they all met in a tavern, how Scanlan had talked her and Vax into taking the job, how Keyleth, fresh from the Air Ashari, had wandered into town, clueless and naive. She told him how Grog had gone missing and how they met Pike, and how Scanlan loved to flirt with every one of them.

She told him about their adventures, about defeating a stillborn god and needing to deal with an unfortunate contract within the Myriad, and about their travels all over Tal’dorei, slipping in some adventures from when her and Vax had been on the road when she found them appropriate.

Percy seemed to be enraptured, focusing steadily on her as she continued to talk and nodding when she paused, encouraging her to go on. It was so easy to talk to him, even after so long apart, and as she continued talking he seemed to grow more and more relaxed, losing the worry in his face, much to her happiness.

Eventually, his head dropped into her shoulder, and she let her cheek rest against the top of his head, continuing to talk until his breathing evened out and it was clear he was asleep.

When he did, Vex continued stroking the back of his hand with her thumb and let her words fade out into the quiet of the night, the breathing from her friends and companions the only noise heard beside those of the forest. She looked at Trinket and Artemis, both snuggled together, and found herself content with where she was for the first time in a very, very long time, even if she had a feeling it wouldn’t stay that way for long.

 

* * *

 

"He legitimately wouldn't stop talking about her,” Artemis said from Trinket’s shoulder, where she was perched. “He missed her so much. I don't understand why we didn't follow when you left."

"Vex mentioned Percy too,” Trinket mumbled, shifting his paws slightly. “Sometimes it was while hunting, but usually when it was just me and her together. She always wondered about what he'd been doing and whether he would even remember her if he saw her again."

"He has sketches of her, and he was always lamenting that they weren't as accurate as they could be," Artemis murmured, hooting sadly. "And then the horrible thing happened, and he came South to find those atrocious people, and to find her."

"Vex will want to help in any way she can," Trinket said, turning an eye to her, where she sat with Percy. "I think she'll do almost anything for him at this point."

"Good. He'll need help. And he'll need her," Artemis said, snuggling a little deeper into Trinket's fur. "He loves her. He won't say it out loud, but he does."

"Vex talks a lot and she hardly ever says she loves people, not to their faces. I can't tell if she's scared, or if she thinks she doesn't need to."

"I think she loves him too. She came and got him from that horrible place the moment I asked. And look at them now."

Sure enough, Vex was looking at Percy, head cradled against her chest and completely passed out, with a look of fond affection.

"I'm sure she does," Trinket agreed. "Usually when people ask for her help she asks all sorts of questions, but she offered to go after him like it was instinct."

"I'm glad they're together again. And I hope they don't leave each other." Artemis hooted, beak opening in a low yawn. "Good night, Trinket," she mumbled.

"Good night, Artemis," Trinket growled, sighing as he let himself relax into the soft ground. He hoped that they stayed together, too.


End file.
